A Sunday afternoon blaze at the NYCHA Mill Brook Houses turned into a lithium battery scare, after firefighters discovered batteries inside a fifth-floor apartment in the South Bronx, officials said.
The fire broke out around 1 p.m. on the building’s fifth floor, pushing residents out onto the street and forcing a halt to elevator service while crews moved in on the flames. More than 100 firefighters responded as windows were shattered to vent the smoke, and neighbors described thick smoke choking the stairwells. The FDNY said no injuries were reported.
Residents were stuck outside as firefighters worked, watching and waiting for updates. One neighbor, identified only as Tiffany, told reporters she saw “white smoke in the stairwell,” according to News 12…